Automatic adjustable draw-bar for traction-engines.



A. C. J-OHNSGN.

AUTOMATIC ADJUSTABLE DRAW BAR FOR TRACTION ENGINES.

APPUCAHON FILED MBA, 1915. RENEWED DEC. 13,1915.

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APPLlCATlON FILED MAR. 4,1915- RENEWED DEC. 13,19; 1,205,351 Patented Nov; 21, 1916,

2 SHEETSSHEET 2 INVENT B wag ATT RN Y ALFRED C. JOHNSON, OF WINI ERS, CALIFORNIA.

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Application filed March 4, 1915, Serial No. 12,140. Renewed December 13, 1915.

To all whom it may concern: I

Be it known that I, ALrRno C. JOHNSON, a citizen of the United States, residing at Winters, in the county of Yolo and State of California, have invented a certain. new and useful Improvement in Automatic Adjustable Draw-Bars for Traction-Engines, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to automatic adjustable draw-bars for traction engines, and the object of my invention is to produce a mechanism by means of which the point of at tachment of the load to the engine may be shifted; automatically in the direction of the pivotal wheel when said traction engine is turning ineither direction.- Assuming that a. tract-ion engine is pulling a load. and is making a turn. If no'adjusting device is used the point of attachment of the load to the engine frame remains fixed. The farther this point of attachment is from the pivotal wheel in the direction of the outer wheel the reater the load thrown upon said outer whee In my device this point of attachment automatically moves toward the pivotal wheel thus relieving said outer wheel of a portion of its work and throwing the greater portion of the work upon the slower moving pivotal wheel.

A further object of the inventionis to produce a simple and inexpensive device of A the character mentioned whichcan be readily and easily attached to a traction engine of any design.

These objects I accomplish by means of such structure and relative arrangement of the parts as will fully appear by a perusal of the following specification and claims.

On the drawings similar reference characters refer to similar parts throughout the several views.

.Figure l is a plan view of my device. Fig. 2 is an culargedcross section on line A-A of Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is an enlarged cross section on line B B of Fig. 1. Fig; 4 is a sectional view on line CC of Fig. 1, parts being broken away. 5. G, 7 and 8 are diagrammatic views illustrating the operation of my device.

Referring now more particularly to the drawings, 1 indicates the frame of the traction engine and 2 the bar of my device which is secured to said frame 1. The outer edge i Specification of Letters Patent.

AUTOMATIC ADJUSTABLE DRAW-BAR FOR TRACTION-ENGINES.

Patented Nov. 21, 19165.

Serial No. 66,838.

of said bar 2 is provided with a flange 3 anda rack at and has a bar 5 bolted thereto by bolts 6 said bar 5 being formed substantially as shown in Fig. 1, A flange is formed on the inner edge of bar 5 as shown at 7. At 8 and '9 are shown the upper and lower plates respectively in which the working parts of my device. are journaled, and in which flanged rollers lO'and 11 are journaled. Flanged rollers 10 and 11- are so p0 sitioned with relation to plates 8 and 9 as to operate against flange '7 on bar 5 as shown in Fig. Plates 8 and 9 are preferably made triangular inshape with rollers 10 and 11 positioned in two of the angles and bearings 12 and 13 provided in the third angle. At 14 is shown a gear screwed on to shouldered shaft 15. and journaled in bearing lfl'and having a square hub at 16 adapted to engage a square hole in one of the arms of draw-bar 17, the other arm of "said draw-bar 17 engaging a. square shoulder on the opposite end of said shouldered shaft 15. At 18 is indicated a shaft rigidly mounted in plates '8 and 9 respectively. Revoluhly mounted on shaft 18 is sleeve 19 carrying gears 20 and 21 respectively in such a manner that gear 20 will engage gear 14 and gear 21 will engage gear Gears 22 and 23 are rigidly mounted on sleeve 24 which revolves freely on shaft 15, gear 23 engaging rack 4.

It may now be seen that with the gears arrangedas before described and proportioned approximately as shown in Fig. 2, when gear 14 is turned in one direction by means of draw-bar 17 gears 2-2 and 23 are turned in the same direction through the medium of gears 20 and 21; and since gear is in engagement with rack 4c the Whole movable portion of the device is caused to travel in the direction of movement of said draw-bar a distance depending upon the shown in Fig. 6 the movable portion of my device moves toward the pivotal wheel to a point as 26, As the load 1 follows the engine which has completed the turn the mov able portion of my device moves back toward the point 25, Fig. 7 showing the same at a point 27 on its return movement. In

Fig. 8 the load 1 has also completed the turn and again pulls from point 25. A short turn would 'ause the movable portion of my device to travel to the extremity of rack t as indicated in dotted lines at '28 in Fig. 1, the same traveling to the right or left according to the direction of the turn.

By providing laterally spaced openings 17 extending to opposite sides of the draftbar to receive a coupling pin for connecting Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is 1. A device of the character described,

comprising an oblong frame having a rack formed on the inner edge of one of its long sides, and a laterally movable frame operable by a draw-bar and gear mechanism operatively positioned in said first men tioned frame, said gear mechanism com-' prising a gear secured to a vertical shaft and journaled in one of the sides of said laterally movable frame and secured to one arm of said draw-bar, said vertical shaft being journaled in the other side of said laterally movable frame and secured to the other arm of said draw-bar, a

relatively smaller gear secured to a sleeve revolubly mounted on a vertical shaft secured in said laterally movable frame in such a position that said gear will engage said first mentioned gear, a third and relatively large gear secured. to said sleeve, a fourth and relatively small gear secured to a sleeve revolubly mounted on said first mentioned vertical shaft in such a position as to engage said third gear, and a fifth and relatively large gear secured to said last mentioned sleeve and so positioned as to engage in said rack, substantially as shown and described.

2. A device of the character described, comprising an oblong frame having a rack formed on the inneredge of one of its long sides and a track formed 011 the inner edge of the other long side, and a laterally movable frame operable by a draw-bar and gear mechanism operatively positioned in said first mentioned frame, said gear mechanism comprising a gear secured to a vertical shaft and journaled in one of the sides of said laterally movable frame and secured toone arm of said draw-bar, said vertical shaft being journaled in the other side of said laterally movable frame and secured to the other arm of said draw-bar, a relatively smaller gear secured to a sleeve revolubly mounted on a vertical shaft secured in said laterally movable frame in such a position that said gear will engage said first mentioned gear, a third and relatively large gear secured to said sleeve, a fourth and relatively small gear secured to a sleeve revolubly mounted on said first mentioned vertical shaft in such a position as to engage said third gear, and a fifth and relatively large gear secured to said last mentioned sleeve and so positioned as to engage in said rack, said laterally movable frame having a plurality of rollers mounted therein in such a manner as to engage said track, substantially as shown and described.

3. A draft connection consisting in the combination of'a swinging draw-bar and a laterally shiftable fulcrum therefor, a support for the fulcrum, and means operated by the swinging movement of the draft-bar for positivelyshifting the fulcrum on its support in the direction of the swinging of the draw-bar.

4. A draft connection consisting in the combination of a swinging draw-bar and 'a laterally shiftable fulcrum therefor, a support for the fulcrum, and means' operated by the swinging movement of the draft-bar I gine, of a transversely extending trackway a rack parallel therewith, a carriage shiftable .along said trackway and having gear connections with the rack, a draw-bar fulcrumed on the carriage and operatively connected with the gearing thereon whereby the travel of the carriage on said trackway is controlled through the oscillation of the draw-bar. I

6. In combination, draft and drawn vehicles and a swinging draft-bar between the same, a shiftable fulcrum for said bar operable by an angular deflection of the same and adapted to occupy a central point on the draft vehicle when drawn straight, and off-set means on said draft-bar to receive a connection with the drawn vehiclewhereby to permit said bar to permanently occupy an angular position to form a side hitch for the drawn vehicle.

7. The combination with a tractor, of a transversely extending trackway, a rack 1 angular movement of the draw-bar to shift the carriage laterally.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto a-ffixed my signature in presenc e of two subscribing witnesses.

ALFRED O. JOHNSON. Witnesses:

JOHN A. NA'IBMITH, J. B. CAMZBERS. 

